Science Café to feature discussion on ‘Spilling the Beans on a Whole Latte Elements’ on Oct. 2

91̽��’s Science Café will present Dr. Andrea Richard discussing “Spilling the Beans on a Whole Latte Elements” on Wednesday, Oct. 2.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 5 p.m. in the Front Room on the fourth floor of Baker University Center and via YouTube.

All of the heavy elements in the universe that make up each of us, and coffee, too, originally come from collisions and explosions of massive stars in the early universe. Here on Earth, scientists like Richard try to understand the complex puzzle of how elements were made in the stars by measuring the nuclear reactions that occur in those environments. In this presentation, she will discuss the current understanding of the origin of heavy elements in the universe, the crucial role played by nuclear physics, and the women who made nuclear astrophysics.

Richard is an assistant professor in the Physics and Astronomy Department in the College of Arts and Sciences. Her research focuses on measuring nuclear reactions that are important for astrophysics and applications. She is a member of the Institute for Nuclear and Particle Physics (INPP) at OHIO and serves on nuclear physics community organizations such as the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams Users Executive Committee.